Yahoo Finance First Women of Indian Cinema: 7 Women Who Scripted History with Their Cinematic Achievements
The Indian film industry is widely known for its repertoire of Hindi and regional films. But for decades, most Indian films focused on male characters that define ‘machismo’ while the women were reduced to mere ‘eye candy’. And although there has been a steady rise in women-centric films, a lot more needs to be done.
This also holds true when it comes to technicians behind the camera. As per a 2017 report by the Geena Davis Institute, only one in 10 directors in Bollywood are women. The gender disparity also extends to other off-screen careers in cinema such as cinematography, art direction, music composition, and sound mixing, among others.
But, some women have broken the glass ceiling, proving to be role models in their fields. These trailblazers have made history by being the first in their line of work. Let’s take a look:
BR Vijayalakshmi, Asia’s first woman cinematographer
A pioneer in her field, BR Vijayalakshmi is Asia’s first woman cinematographer. Before venturing into the cinematic field, she worked as an interior designer but her heart lay in films. Although she was keen to pursue a cinematography course from film school, cinematographer Ashok Kumar persuaded her to work as a camera assistant.
She was actively involved with mainstream Tamil cinema from the 1980s to mid-90s, and worked in films like Nenjathai Killathe, Kai Kodukkum Kai, and Pillai Nila. Her first film as an independent cinematographer was Chinna Veedu in 1985.
In 1995, she made her directorial debut with Paattu Padava, and also handled the script as well as the cinematography for the film. The movie earned critical acclaim and was also screened at the International Film Festival of India in 1996.
She worked on over 50 films, before taking a break to focus on producing television content.
BR Vijayalakshmi is currently the senior VP of Saregama (South TV and films), a music production house.
Saraswatibai Phalke, India’s first film editor
Many cinema fans are aware of the legendary Dadasaheb Phalke, the maker of India’s first full-length feature film Raja Harishchandra. But not many know of his wife Saraswatibai Phalke, who was India’s first-ever film editor.
She toiled hard on the sets of her husband’s films, where she not only educated herself on the existing technology, but also mixed film-developing chemicals, and perforated raw film sheets.
In a book Lights...Camera...Action! The Life and Times of Dadasaheb Phalke released in 2016, Saraswatibai gets her due credit.
“In all the material I read, the information available about Saraswatibai gave me a feeling that she provided the support system that enabled Dadasaheb to achieve his vision. Not only did she support his work but also actively participated in it,” says Rupali Bhave, the writer.
Saroj Khan, Bollywood’s first female chief choreographer
There is no one who doesn’t know of the legend who was Saroj Khan. She created magic and made top Bollywood actresses like Madhuri Dixit Nene and Sridevi dance to her tunes. Some of her most popular numbers include Hawa Hawai (1987), Kaate Nahin Kat Te (1987), Main Teri Dushman, Dushman Tu Mera (1986), Ek, do, teen (1988), Dhak Dhak Karne Laga (1992), and Choli Pe Peeche Kya (1993).
Saroj Khan started as a background dancer, who shimmied behind the lead actors. With her dedication and determination, she climbed the ladder to success.
Arguably Bollywood’s first female choreographer, Saroj Khan entered the industry as an independent choreographer in 1974, with Geeta Mera Naam. In her illustrious career, she choreographed over 200 numbers.
Fatma Begum, India’s first female director
This list is incomplete without Fatma Begum, India’s first female director.
She was also involved in acting, screenwriting, and production. Fatma was trained in theatre and staged several Urdu plays, before making a foray into Indian cinema in 1922.
Her first outing as a director was with the silent film Veer Abhimanyu (1922). She then went on to direct some works of art, including Bulbul-ae-Paristan (1926), Goddess of Love (1927), Heer Ranjha (1928), Chandrawali (1928), Shakuntala (1929), Milan Dinar (1929), Kanakatara (1929) and Goddess of Luck (1929).
Her last film before retirement was Duniya Kya Kahegi.
Meena Narayanan, India’s first woman sound engineer
A role model for many, Meena Narayanan was India’s first woman sound engineer. She was only in high school when she met her husband A Narayanan, one of the most acclaimed directors in Tamil cinema. He gave her first break and asked her to be an assistant to the famous sound engineer Poddar.
A quick learner, Meena learnt the art of sound engineering in no time. She went on to assist him in the sound recording of the first talkie in southern cinema Srinivas Kalayanam. As a child, she was always drawn to music, and received formal training in Carnatic music that also helped her a lot.
In an interview with Tamil entertainment magazine Ananada Vikatan, Meena expressed her displeasure about male sound engineers getting more opportunities, even with no understanding of music. “There are a lot of problems when sound recording is done by those who have no idea of the language and trend in music... Since I wanted to rectify it, I paid attention to sound engineering and gained experience in two years.”
Meena has worked in over nine films, including the critically-acclaimed documentary of the Eucharist Congress.
Dundhu Renjeev, first woman art director from Kerala
Although Dundhu Rajeev always wanted to be an art director, she was expected to study medicine as she belonged to a family of doctors. She did enrol in a course in Yoga and Naturopathy in Mangalore, but dropped out after the first year to pursue her dreams, and became the first woman art director from Kerala.
Dundhu then registered for an animation course in Toonz Academy in Thiruvananthapuram before joining St. Joseph’s College, Bangalore, where she studied visual communications. As soon as she finished that course, she received an offer to be a part of Dulquer Salman-starrer 100 Days of Love, as an intern.
In 2016, she made her debut as an independent art director, with The ‘Other’ Love Story in 2016. Next, she worked on a crowd-funded experimental film Across the Ocean by Uma Kumarapuram and Hollywood filmmaker, Nicole Donadio.
Her next project is Love Life and Pakodi by director Jayanth Gali, that revolves around a couple who face love life complications, and in the end, rediscover themselves.
(Edited by Saheli Sen Gupta)
